WASHINGTON -- Hoping to help minorities become more sophisticated banking customers, Fleet Financial Group and a Boston-based community organization have teamed up with 30 Washington churches in a new educational initiative.
The Campaign for Economic Literacy, which' was developed in Boston by the Organization for a New Equality, hopes to reach 15,000 Washington minority group members in the next 10 months.
Equity Ownership
Through the program, the organization will distribute pamphlets in church bulletins, hold financial workshops, and help people establish relationships with area lenders.
"We are anxious that people not only be able to pay their bills but that they also own equity in American society," said A. Knighton Stanley, pastor of the Peoples Congregational United Church of Christ, one of the program's participants.
"We believe this will catch hold in Washington," he said, "and we certainly need economic development in this city."
The program is just one of a growing number throughout the country geared to improving the financial savvy of minority group members. As banks seek to increase their minority lending, they have looked increasingly for ways to broaden the pool of qualified borrowers, as well as reaching out to those who are already creditworthy.
Churches' Central Role
A pillar of many minority communities, churches have increasingly played a role in carrying out these programs.
The Rev. Charles Stith, national president of the Organization for a New Equality, has Spearheaded the new campaign. After seeing how successful activists have been in spurring minority and inner-city lending, he wanted to make sure the residents could take advantage of their opportunities, he said.
"The average white family in America has a net worth 10 times that of the average African-American family," Rev. Stith said. "This disparity exists because of the historic bias against blacks trying to access credit and capital."
"Another reason is the lack of experience and knowledge relative to the use of financial institutions," he added. "This campaign is dedicated to cutting the knowledge gap, which is essential to closing the equity gap."
Boston Initiative
Washington is the second city where Rev. Stith has launched an economic literacy initiative. The program is nearing completion in Boston, where 50 churches with 25,000 members have taken part. The Federal National Mortgage Association, Mellon Bank Corp., and American Express Co. funded the Boston initiative.
Next month, in the final stage of that program, the Organization for a New Equality will sponsor a credit "marketplace," at which participants will be able to meet with representatives of more than 30 Boston lenders.
Fleet has given the group $82,000 to run the Washington campaign. That grant came as part of the bank company's three-year, $8 billion commitment to community reinvestment, announced in February.
The campaign will cover topics including household budgeting, improving credit records, buying homes, starting businesses, and planning for retirement.
'A Powerful Tool'
"We are firm believers that education is a powerful tool," said Michael R. Zucchini, vice chairman of Fleet. "These are the kinds of experiments we feel should be happening all across the country."
Although Fleet has two subsidiaries in the Washington area - Fleet Mortgage Group and Fleet Finance Inc. - many area banks will participate in the campaign, Rev. Stith said.
He plans to take his campaign to New York this fall and to four other cities by yearend. Initiatives are being considered in Denver, Atlanta, and Cincinnati.
